tranny swap
01-13-2015, 10:20 PM
#13
Senior Member
To each their own man
01-14-2015, 11:33 AM
#14
Senior Member
The 6 speed you are talking about is a double overdrive, meaning both 5th and 6th gears are overdrive, sixth gear being faster than 5th of course. 4th gear is direct, same speed as third gear in your 4 speed automatic.
I can't see where the 6 speed would help you one bit for towing. Even switching to a 5 speed manual would not be practical if your present automatic transmission is in good condition, in my opinion. 3000 pounds is not that much to tow and a lot of people prefer an automatic transmission for towing.
Now if you had a 460 engine instead of a 302, with the 460s extra power and thirst for fuel, a 6 speed transmission might make sense. Just my 2 cents.
I can't see where the 6 speed would help you one bit for towing. Even switching to a 5 speed manual would not be practical if your present automatic transmission is in good condition, in my opinion. 3000 pounds is not that much to tow and a lot of people prefer an automatic transmission for towing.
Now if you had a 460 engine instead of a 302, with the 460s extra power and thirst for fuel, a 6 speed transmission might make sense. Just my 2 cents.
01-14-2015, 11:54 AM
#15
Senior Member
To the OP, I'm not trying to take shots at you or insult you or question your decision making ability, so please don't take it as such because that is not the intent:
1) Why did you buy a truck with an automatic transmission when you knew you didn't want an automatic? There are lots of these trucks available with 5 speeds. You might want to consider selling your truck before investing anything in it and buying one with a 5 speed to use as a starting point. Or minimize your investment in the truck until you can buy one with a 5 speed. When I bought my truck, I knew what I wanted, looked around, admittedly passed on some good deals because it didn't fit the bill and waited until I found what fit the bill.
2) 3,000 pounds is very light towing weight for a truck. Also, if your transmission is the E4OD, it's already the heavy duty unit and it's built for towing. A 4R70W could probably stand up to 3,000 pounds as well.
3) In addition to #2, you could rebuild the unit and add an additional overdrive clutch plate via a thinner backing plate along with a heavy duty cooler to ensure that heat is not an issue for your automatic transmission and you wouldn't have to worry about burning up the clutches from towing in overdrive. Stock or not, the only time you'll need to take it out of overdrive is when going up an incline and even that depends on the grade of the incline and the speed you're going. Do you live in a hilly or mountainous area? Or has someone fed you a line about automatic overdrives?
4) As well documented on this forum, I am a person that thinks highly of the 302, but it seems like a 351 would be a much better fit for what you're looking for if you're going to be constantly towing and want something that has really good pep.
5) Just my opinion, but an automatic is much easier to tow with than a 5 or 6 speed. And as a previous poster mentioned, a 6 speed is pretty much a double overdrive unit, so you'd still have to downshift. I get that you want the best of all worlds, but it's just my opinion that you should consider selling your truck and buying one that better suits your needs so that you won't have to go as far to convert it over.
6) Your truck is a '96. Does where you live have OBDII inspections? Something to consider when looking for a new ECM if moving forward with your conversion. You might want to find a '96 5 speed ECM since there's really not much mixing and matching than can be done with the '96s.
7) It's your truck and you'll do what you want to it, regardless of what we say on here, but I think for towing, you need to look at upgrading your engine either to a more powerful 302 or a 351 before doing anything or it will be a disappointment when towing (regardless if the trans is an auto or manual) and wanting some serious getup and go when you have that load behind you.
Just my .02.
1) Why did you buy a truck with an automatic transmission when you knew you didn't want an automatic? There are lots of these trucks available with 5 speeds. You might want to consider selling your truck before investing anything in it and buying one with a 5 speed to use as a starting point. Or minimize your investment in the truck until you can buy one with a 5 speed. When I bought my truck, I knew what I wanted, looked around, admittedly passed on some good deals because it didn't fit the bill and waited until I found what fit the bill.
2) 3,000 pounds is very light towing weight for a truck. Also, if your transmission is the E4OD, it's already the heavy duty unit and it's built for towing. A 4R70W could probably stand up to 3,000 pounds as well.
3) In addition to #2, you could rebuild the unit and add an additional overdrive clutch plate via a thinner backing plate along with a heavy duty cooler to ensure that heat is not an issue for your automatic transmission and you wouldn't have to worry about burning up the clutches from towing in overdrive. Stock or not, the only time you'll need to take it out of overdrive is when going up an incline and even that depends on the grade of the incline and the speed you're going. Do you live in a hilly or mountainous area? Or has someone fed you a line about automatic overdrives?
4) As well documented on this forum, I am a person that thinks highly of the 302, but it seems like a 351 would be a much better fit for what you're looking for if you're going to be constantly towing and want something that has really good pep.
5) Just my opinion, but an automatic is much easier to tow with than a 5 or 6 speed. And as a previous poster mentioned, a 6 speed is pretty much a double overdrive unit, so you'd still have to downshift. I get that you want the best of all worlds, but it's just my opinion that you should consider selling your truck and buying one that better suits your needs so that you won't have to go as far to convert it over.
6) Your truck is a '96. Does where you live have OBDII inspections? Something to consider when looking for a new ECM if moving forward with your conversion. You might want to find a '96 5 speed ECM since there's really not much mixing and matching than can be done with the '96s.
7) It's your truck and you'll do what you want to it, regardless of what we say on here, but I think for towing, you need to look at upgrading your engine either to a more powerful 302 or a 351 before doing anything or it will be a disappointment when towing (regardless if the trans is an auto or manual) and wanting some serious getup and go when you have that load behind you.
Just my .02.
Last edited by qdeezie; 01-14-2015 at 12:09 PM.